Rather Foes

April 12, 1988|By Reed Irvine, Chairman, Accuracy in Media Inc.

WASHINGTON — While I am grateful to Tribune columnist Steve Daley for his help in publicizing Accuracy in Media`s drive to impeach Dan Rather, the CBS anchorman. I wish that he had taken the trouble to ascertain exactly what we are doing and why.

We published a 3,500-word report titled ``Why CBS Should Fire Dan Rather.`` Daley evidently has not read this carefully documented indictment of Rather`s violations of CBS News standards and his unprofessional conduct. Instead, he based his column entirely on the 138-word petition we are circulating to gather signatures.

Had Daley contacted us before writing his column, he would have learned that we are charging that Dan Rather has violated specific rules laid down for the guidance of CBS News employees; that CBS must enforce its rules if they are to be taken seriously; that Walter Cronkite, a member of the CBS board, has said Rather should have been fired for walking off the set and letting CBS go black for six minutes last September; and that Rather aired the Soviet charge that the U.S. Army had created and spread the AIDS virus without giving any reaction from the accused. When it was pointed out to CBS News that this was Soviet disinformtion and the record should be corrected, Rather`s executive producer refused to take any action.

At the CBS annual meeting on May 11, I will present petitions calling for Rather`s removal signed by thousands of people, and a resolution calling on CBS to appoint an ombudsman to handle complaints of inaccurate and unfair reporting.